“The commitment and enthusiasm the PHP guys have brought to the Subaru dealer network has been first-class and the value we have got from these workshops has been excellent. I personally have taken a lot from the four workshops I have attended so far and together with my team we have been able to implement much of what we’ve learned in the dealership already and the results speak for themselves."
PHP researched the network before delivering the workshops through a number of on-site dealer visits, a questionnaire to all dealers to gather their thoughts and expectations of what they would like to get out of a used-car sales programme and in depth discussion with Subaru senior management re the shift in mindset they felt was required across the dealer network in order to improve used-car sales performance.
PHP also carried out a mystery shopping exercise, covering both physical and audio shops, to gain a good idea of their starting point with the dealer network before commencing delivery of the programme.
This highly interactive programme of sales workshops was designed to increase used car sales by developing a significant cultural change across the entire Subaru network involving sales people of all different ages and experience levels across the length and breadth of the country.
had this to say, “I am 60 years old, so I have done a few courses in my time and as sales courses go this one is the best I have been on in 20 years. The Programme Manager from PHP, is as near to real-world as you are going to get. There was a lot of useful material, but I liked the appraisal section best because for me, I thought the guys came at it from an angle of how things really are in the true working environment. Both guys were great, very knowledgeable and very professional.”
The PHP Consultants chosen for this project are highly qualified and experienced in automotive sales practice as well as people development. The programme manager is vastly experienced in people development and has been involved in setting up dealerships in the UK and abroad. The Project Director, Dean Hines, for the Subaru Used Car programme is a Director of PHP Ltd and co-creator of PHP’s five piece people development model, Human Change Technology TM, that is specifically for the automotive industry. Human Change Technology TM combines neuro-linguistic programming, accelerated learning, emotional intelligence, hypnotic change technique and underpinning all of this is a powerful personality and psychometric profiling tool that PHP use called Insights.
PHP programme designers used Human Change Technology to build a bespoke 6-module programme for Subaru that emphasizes all the key principles of successful selling blended with PHP’s in depth understanding the used-car marketplace.
The programme began in September and will conclude in July with Workshop 6 which will recap all of the salient points from the entire programme.
- Perception vs reality
- Insights – developing a winning team
- Used-car enquiry management
- Measurement
- Follow up and follow through
- Action planning
- Out of the box thinking
- Case study exercise on planning for profit
- Identifying personality types
- Consistent approach
- Brain logic
- Action planning.
This module was developed especially for Subaru and was an extension of the tradition 4 P’s of marketing Place, Product, Price, Promotion. For Subaru the additional P’s were People (which is traditionally used for marketing a service) and Portfolio – Subaru’s Used Car Marketing Agency.
- Appraisals
- The profit is in the buying
- Identifying customer needs effectively
- Managing customer relationships for maximum profit
- Fish philosophy – can change the culture of the workplace with four keystones:
- Play
- Make Their Day
- Be There
- Choose Your Attitude
had this to say, “You cannot afford to miss this – it really gives completely different emphasis on all the key aspects of selling. The workshops so far have not been like other sales training courses, this one really makes you think and use your brain. It has been excellent value for money. You can send as many people as you wish to attend all modules.”
The programme was designed to give practical help and advice to dealer sales people so that they could return to their showrooms and implement quickly and easily what they had learnt.
, told us, “How to deal with customers during the part-exchange process was very useful. Since the workshop we have started using the appraisal forms. Also I took a lot from the marketing workshop. There is no real point writing to your customers once a year about servicing. We have implemented an ongoing campaign for this year which means we will be in touch with our customer base several times throughout the next 12 months with different offers and incentives.”
, commented, “The workshop that really stands out in my memory is the one about conversion rates. The exercise where we looked at the numbers grow – incoming enquiries to appointments and test drives and the missed opportunities really hit home hard with me! Although I had done some of the stuff before PHP came did seem to cover it from very new and different angles. We all get so caught up in all the day to day stuff that’s always going on sometimes we forget the basics. These workshops have been very helpful in hammering home those important basics.”
said, “The material presented at workshops has been extremely fresh. Compared with the many courses I have been on over the past 10 years, which often seem to be run by failed salesmen, the PHP workshops have been extremely honest and realistic – more real-world than any other course I have ever been on. I would say as high as 98% of it has been excellent. I have implemented the phone script system that I liked very much and I have taken on the leads analysis tools whole heartedly.”
, told us, “I liked the ‘fish’ philosophy very much and have brought that back with me. I loved the concept. It made me think about the teamwork ethic and making the workplace fun. The workshops have been a great refresher, bringing all the important sales principles back to the forefront of your mind.”
, commented, “The PHP consultant was very interesting. He made it interesting, kept it interesting, I was very, very impressed. We have started implementing things already. A particular favourite of mine was the Richard Branson 7 out of 10 example, where you ask the customer how would you score us right now out of 10, if they come back and say 7 out of 10 or whatever you then ask, what do we need to do to get to 10 out of 10. It’s simple, but we like it and have used it a few times now in sales situations. It focuses the mind – theirs and ours. I am very much looking forward to the next workshop.”
added, “The Insights concept really stands out in my memory. It has made me more conscious of why we get better rapport and empathy with some people than others. I also liked the funneling technique and we implemented this as soon as we got back as well as the guide to sales presentations. We took so much of it on board and were able to fine tune what we do here. We are getting some great results!”
told us, “A lot of the stuff has really gone in. I feel I don’t need to refer to my notes much at all. Thinking out of the box, the fish philosophy, sharpening your axe. We are implementing a lot of it. I have always believed you get better results when the work place is fun anyway. I am impressed with PHP’s lead management diaries – the ESP system – and we are implementing that immediately. I would say to any dealership that hasn’t been to a workshop yet, don’t hesitate – don’t for one minute think that you are doing everything right, nobody ever gets everything right all of the time. Do not pass go – get yourselves there!”
– will take place in June and will provide a platform for Subaru to launch its brand new Internet Sales Tools for used cars.
– will take place in July and will recap over all of the salient points covered in workshops 1-5 with emphasis on action planning and implementation and focus on achieving outstanding sales results!
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